Action for Albion: Regulator must prove it will bring change
An Albion supporter pressure group says a new football regulator must make a meaningful difference in saving England’s league pyramid.
The regulator, initially lobbied by former sports minister and chair of the fan-led review Tracey Crouch, was included in the King’s Speech at the state opening in Parliament yesterday.
The new independent regulator will mean all clubs in the top five tiers having to apply for a licence to continue operating in England and Wales.
The legislation will introduce tougher owner and director tests for clubs to address ‘growing concerns about financial mismanagement… and questions about illicit finance’.
Fan group Action for Albion – who have campaigned against absent Baggies controlling shareholder Guochuan Lai – have called for change from the regulation’s current ‘fundamental weakness’.
Their statement read: “Football regulation has a fundamental weakness. A system that has allowed one elite league to prosper at the expense of the infrastructure that feeds it.
“The same body that quite rightly criticised a movement to create a European Super League in April 2021 and did everything in their power to stop the ‘big six’ football clubs in England breaking away, as it would affect the competition they created, fail to see they are doing exactly the same to the other 72 professional football league clubs in their own country. The hypocrisy is astounding.
“This has to change. Our national game does not simply exist to feed the wealth of a small number of clubs. It is the bedrock of towns, cities and communities, for more than 150 years.
“A new regulator cannot simply be a rebranding of what we have. It must have powers, resourcing and independence.
“It must be able to address the inherent financial deficiencies that have been allowed to flourish under the dominance of the Premier League.”
New rules will also be brought in, meaning clubs have to secure more than 50 per cent of fan support before changing their badge, name or home shirt colours.
Clubs will also be banned from joining breakaway leagues, following the scandal over England’s top sides attempting to form a European Super League.
The Conservative government pledged: “The regulator’s narrow focus will be protecting the long-term sustainability of clubs for the benefit of their fans and communities and helping to prevent the collapse of clubs.”
Action for Albion argue that the regulator will prove redundant if football regulation continues to be dominated by the Premier League.
It read: “At the moment football regulation is led by the power of one league. The EFL is poorly resourced and cannot compete. Even worse, the clubs that do try to compete, risk financial oblivion.
“The Championship, the 5th biggest league competition in world football is unsustainable. Many clubs in its recent history have entered administration and been penalised with points deductions accordingly, which, whilst we accept and understand there needs to be punishments for breaking rules, ultimately harms the clubs and its fans.
“This cannot go on. Whatever happens from now on, the Premier League should not be allowed to block the development of proper regulation of our game.
“If it does, then the new regulator will fail before it can even begin.”
The Fair Game UK group, a coalition of value-driven football clubs seeking an improvement in the governance of football in England and Wales, described the implementation of the regulator as a ‘watershed day’ and ‘historic moment’.
The group said: “Today’s announcement is a historic moment for football and represents a real chance to end the cycle of overspending and mismanagement that has plagued our National Game and threatened the very existence of our clubs.
“Right now clubs like Sheffield Wednesday, Reading and Scunthorpe United are staring into the abyss.
“There will be intense pressure to weaken the regulator’s remit at a time when proper protection and scrutiny of our national game is needed more than ever.
“Those tasked with setting up the regulator must resist that pressure and remain laser-focused to deliver a fairer future for football and the culture change the sport desperately needs.
“Reckless spending, disconnect between clubs and their communities, and lip service to equality standards must be consigned to the rubbish bin of history. This transformation can only be achieved if the regulator has the teeth and resources to deliver.”
